Ste nced at the mess scattered all over the hotel room, then at the single, unmistakable bloodstain on the crisp white sheets.


    She turned, her expression a storm of confusion and concern, and looked at Yvonne. "Sis, you..."


    "My first time? Dan never got that far, if you''re asking. Back when things were good, I actually thought I''d wait until we were married, you know?"


    There was an odd, almost careless tone in Yvonne''s voice whenever she mentioned Dan now.


    But the thought of her first time being lost like this-so unclear and out of her control-made her want to punch a hole through the wall.


    All she wanted now was to hunt down the bastard who did this, and wring his neck.


    Ste was genuinely surprised.


    She''d always assumed that Yvonne and Dan, who''d seemed inseparable back then, had crossed that line ages ago.


    Yvonne grabbed her ss of water and took a long, angry gulp. “Damn it. I don''t even know who the hell took my first time."


    Her voice was thick with rage.


    Ste looked her over again, noticing the angry red marks on Yvonne''s neck. "Right now, the most important thing is to find out who did this."


    Whoever it was, they weren''t walking away from this.


    Yvonne nodded, her jaw clenched. "Yeah. We''re finding them, no matter what."


    Damn it...


    This whole thing was aplete nightmare.


    Ste asked, "Who brought you back to your roomst night?"


    "Julia. You know her. I called her earlier-she said when she dropped me off, the room was totally empty."


    Just thinking about it made Yvonne''s blood boil again.


    Damn it, what kind of crap had shended herself in? This was absolutely insane.


    Ste frowned. "And the security staff said the cameras were down?"


    "Yeah, can you believe that? Broken, right at that exact time?" Yvonne spat out, furious.


    She wanted to find the bastard and tear him apart, but it felt like he''d vanished into thin air.


    Ste muttered, "That''s a little too convenient."


    She had the same suspicion as Yvonne-this wasn''t just bad luck.


    Ten minutester.


    The hotel manager arrived, pale and nervous, with the head of security in tow. Both were clearly on edge after Yvonne''s demand to see them in her room.


    UM


    Ste calmly reached into her purse, pulled out a handgun, and set it on the coffee table.


    Her icy re swept over the two men.


    She didn''t even have to say a word the color drained from the security chief''s and the manager''s faces.


    Yvonne saw Ste''s move, and her mouth twitched in surprise. "You-you still carry that thing around?"


    That gun was a gift-something she''d given Ste years ago, after Ste had been kidnapped. She hadn''t seen her bring it out in ages.


    Just because Ste heard something was wrong over the phone, she''de running, armed and ready?


    Yvonne felt a sudden rush of gratitude for her sister.


    The hotel manager cleared his throat, trying to keep his voice steady. "Ms. Quinn, is there a problem?"


    He knew exactly who they were. With the Quinn family''s reputation, his tone was respectful, bordering on terrified.


    Honestly, he felt like he was


    standing on a barbecue grill.


    Whoever made them erase those


    security tapes had threatened their lives and if he let anything Slip now, he was dead meat either way.


    And if he didn''t answer these two right... well, he doubted he''d walk out of this room.


    Why was surviving in this world so damn hard?


    Ste lounged casually on the sofa, one hand resting protectively over her stomach. "Let''s not waste time. Who deleted the security footage?"


    Manager and security both went sheet-white.


    Yvonne''s head snapped toward Ste. "Deleted? You mean it wasn''t just broken?" Goddamn it!


    How dare they pull this kind of stunt-especially with someone like her.


    Shit!


    The security chief broke out in a cold sweat. "Ms. Quinn, I swear, the cameras were down. That''s all."


    He looked like he was about to cry-caught between a rock and a hard ce, and terrified for his family.


    Ste''s icy re didn''t waver. She didn''t say a word.


    "It''s the truth, I swear," the security guy stammered, practically shaking in his


    boots.


    At this point, he was silently cursing fate.


    yone he dealt with tonight


    was scarier than thest. And when the unknown culprit threatened his family, he''d caved without a fight.


    But facing the Quinn sisters, he wondered if he''d made the wrong choice after all.